Leafing through town tree programs
Budget 2008
By Chris Simon

Town council is arbouring thoughts on a few tree maintenance programs.

During 2008 Operating Budget deliberations, a town committee passed $15,500 in recommendations for two tree maintenance programs. If approved by town council, $12,500 would be used to fund roadside brush and tree removal. There are over 475 known dead trees along town roadsides which cannot be removed due to current funding levels, said community services director George Shaparew.

"Staff have surveyed town roads and at this point, we've estimated over 475 dead trees. They do pose a liability, they're on municipal property," he said. "We have a responsibility to deal with these. This would be a start for us to proactively deal with these hazards."

The program would allow staff to catalogue a proper dead tree inventory throughout the town.

Shaparew says the program is necessary to reduce liability, insurance claims, and lawsuits by removing several roadside hazards.

"This is an excellent recommendation," said councillor Bill Pring. "I don't believe we have significant lawsuits against us for trees falling, but it will assist us if we're actively out there doing that. Under risk management, we're making an effort."

Others question the necessity of the program.

"I don't know how it's going to make much of a difference in the town, if it's less than one per cent of the total trees in the municipality," said councillor Dan Davidson.

The committee also approved $3,000 in funding for a boulevard tree replacement program. The funding, if approved by council, would be used to maintain and replace boulevard trees in subdivisions throughout the town. Prior to 1995, funding for subdivision tree replacement was included in Innisfil's annual budget. Staff had requested funding for the program in each of the last two years, but were denied. However, as the town's subdivisions mature - and more are built - dying trees need to be addressed, said Shaparew.

"We don't have a plan to replace these trees," he said. "Over the next few years, we'd start mitigating those tree losses."